Western Australian state election, 1897
Encyclopedia
Elections were held in the state
of Western Australia
between 27 April and 26 May 1897 to elect 44 members to the Western Australian Legislative Assembly
. The Ministerialist group led by John Forrest
won a third term in office as a result of the elections. The poll took place based on boundaries established in the Constitution Act Amendment Act 1896, which increased the number of members from 33 mainly by adding new seats in the Goldfields region, and had been called a year earlier than was necessary. In 18 of the 44 seats, only one candidate nominated and polls were not held.
As payment of members was not introduced until 1900, the Political Labour Party, formed in 1896, had found it difficult to attract candidates who could afford to enter Parliament, but three of its candidates ran for election, and Charles Oldham, a former president of the Trades and Labor Council, became the first Labour member of Parliament in Western Australia.
Notes:
States and territories of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a union of six states and various territories. The Australian mainland is made up of five states and three territories, with the sixth state of Tasmania being made up of islands. In addition there are six island territories, known as external territories, and a...
of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
between 27 April and 26 May 1897 to elect 44 members to the Western Australian Legislative Assembly
Western Australian Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of parliament in the Australian state of Western Australia. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Perth....
. The Ministerialist group led by John Forrest
John Forrest
Sir John Forrest GCMG was an Australian explorer, the first Premier of Western Australia and a cabinet minister in Australia's first federal parliament....
won a third term in office as a result of the elections. The poll took place based on boundaries established in the Constitution Act Amendment Act 1896, which increased the number of members from 33 mainly by adding new seats in the Goldfields region, and had been called a year earlier than was necessary. In 18 of the 44 seats, only one candidate nominated and polls were not held.
As payment of members was not introduced until 1900, the Political Labour Party, formed in 1896, had found it difficult to attract candidates who could afford to enter Parliament, but three of its candidates ran for election, and Charles Oldham, a former president of the Trades and Labor Council, became the first Labour member of Parliament in Western Australia.
Results
|}Notes:
- The Ministerialists' total of 29 seats includes 16 which were uncontested, representing 4,297 of the 23,318 enrolled voters. A further two seats, won by George LeakeGeorge LeakeGeorge Leake CMG QC was Premier of Western Australia from 27 May 1901 to 21 November 1901, and again from 23 December 1901 until his death on 24 June 1902.-Early life:...
(AlbanyElectoral district of AlbanyThe Electoral district of Albany is a Legislative Assembly electorate in the state of Western Australia. Albany is named for the port and regional city of Western Australia which falls within its borders. It is one of the oldest electorates in Western Australia, with its first member having been...
, Oppositionist) and Elias SolomonElias SolomonElias Solomon was an Australian politician. Born in London, England, he migrated to Australia as a child. He had no formal education, but in 1868 became a clerk and auctioneer in Fremantle in Western Australia. In 1877 he was elected to the Fremantle City Council...
(South FremantleElectoral district of South FremantleSouth Fremantle was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Western Australia from 1890 to 1962.Based in urban South Fremantle, the district was one of the original 30 seats contested at the 1890 state election...
, Independent) representing 1,907 enrolled voters were also uncontested.
See also
- Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, 1894–1897
- Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, 1897–1901Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, 1897–1901The following is a list of members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly between the 1897 elections and the 1901 elections, together known as the Third Parliament.-Notes:...